SCAD recognized for three national honors at American Institute of Architects Convention

SCAD School of Building Arts Dean Christian Sottile, the recipient of the AIA
Young Architects Award, with Martin Smith, SCAD Executive Director of Design
and New Construction, at the AIA Convention in Chicago. Smith was
instrumental in the revitalization of SCAD’s Museum of Art, the recipient
of the 2014 AIA National Honor Award for Architecture.

CHICAGO —

Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) was recognized for three honors by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) at the institute’s national convention held in Chicago June 26-28. AIA’s elected leadership, jury members and component staff acknowledged the 2014 AIA Honor Award recipients, including the SCAD Museum of Art (MOA) as the recipient of the 2014 American Institute of Architects Honor Award for Architecture; SCAD School of Building Arts Dean Christian Sottile as the recipient of the AIA Young Architects Award; and SCAD Master of Architecture student, Adam Drummond, as one of five recipients of the 2014 AIA Fellowship for Emerging Leaders.

“We’re honored to be recognized by the leaders of the architecture industry at the AIA Convention,” said SCAD President and Co-Founder Paula Wallace. “I am delighted to congratulate SCAD School of Building Arts Dean Christian Sottile on his well deserved 2014 Young Architects Award. Dean Sottile truly sets the standard in architectural education as a classicist, innovator and in-demand architect.”

2014 AIA Honor Award for Architecture: SCAD Museum of Art

The SCAD MOA, the largest historic preservation project in SCAD history, reinforces the university's dedication to adaptive reuse and urban revitalization. Dubbed one of the eleven coolest buildings in North America by CNN, the finished museum site includes the former headquarters of the Central of Georgia Railroad as well as the masonry ruins of a freight warehouse, both constructed in the mid-19th century. This National Historic Landmark is the only surviving antebellum railroad complex in the country.

The ruins were integrated within a contemporary concrete structure, preserving and highlighting the historic materials as a fundamental part of the new architecture. SCAD architects and designers analyzed and reproduced key original components, including the chemical compounds of the 19th century mortar, and salvaged and reused such historic materials as heart pine timbers and fallen Savannah Gray brick.

2014 AIA Young Architects Award: School of Building Arts Dean Christian Sottile

The AIA Young Architects Award is a prestigious award given to individuals who have shown exceptional leadership and made significant contributions to the profession in an early stage of their architecture career. Sottile, who serves as the dean of the School of Building Arts at SCAD, is a visionary leader in the urban renewal of Savannah, the largest National Landmark Historic District in the United States. His firm, Sottile & Sottile has authored several landmark city plans, including the Civic Master Plan for the East Riverfront in Savannah and the SCAD Museum of Art.

Sottile’s work has been featured in the New York Times, Preservation Magazine, Architect Magazine and Architectural Digest. As the Dean of the School of Building Arts, Sottile oversees disciplines including architecture, architectural history, historic preservation, interior design, furniture design and urban design.

Sottile graduated as valedictorian from SCAD with a Master of Architecture degree and earned his master’s degree in urban design and architecture from Syracuse University.

The AIA Board of Directors Class of 2013 offered five fellowships in the amount of $1,000 each to allow future generations of architects the opportunity to attend the AIA Convention. SCAD Masters of Architecture student, Adam Drummond, was selected as one of five students to receive the Emerging Leaders fellowship. At the AIA Convention, Drummond is being paired with two AIA Board of Director members, who will help to enrich his convention experience and professional network opportunities.

Drummond earned his bachelor’s degree in industrial sciences c/o architectural sciences from Western Kentucky University before being accepted to SCAD’s Master of Architecture program. In his second quarter at SCAD, Drummond believes a good architect is made of three specific parts: work ethic, opportunity and connections. Drummond looks forward to the opportunities and connections that he will make as an AIA Fellowship recipient.

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